ICT Tools for
Teaching Vocabulary
Natalia Katasonova

Learning Outcomes
By the end of this session you will be able to:
list ICT tools for vocabulary development;
evaluate the usefulness of various web-based
activities for vocabulary development;
create your own web-based activities for teaching
vocabulary.

Free Online Flashcards
Websites for creating and sharing flashcards:
1. http://quizlet.com/ (study groups, chats, message
boards, space race game, scatter game)
2. http://www.flashcardexchange.com (the world's
largest flashcard library)
3. http://www.muchobeets.com/ (picture flashcards)
4. http://www.studystack.com/ (hangman, crossword
puzzles, matching and word games)

TASK
1. Register at http://quizlet.com/.
2. Watch the video tour.
3. Study this sample flashcard set.
4. Create your own set (at least 5 words).
5. Exchange sets with your neighbours.
6. What do you like and not like?

Online Concordancer
A concordancer is a piece of software that searches a corpus
(a collection of texts in electronic form) for a selected word or
phrase and presents every instance of that word or phrase in
the centre of the computer screen, with the words that come
before and after it to the left and right.
A node word is a selected word, appearing in the centre of the
screen.
A concordance is the lines of text illustrating the search word,
the node.

Sample Concordance

Ideas for Using Concordancers
A concordancer can be used to:
compare language use - standard English/scientific English,
written/spoken;
analyze the language in books, readers, and course books;
analyze usage - when is it appropriate to use obtain rather than get ?
examine word order;
explore word families;
explore collocations;
understand differences in meanings and patterns;
find genuine examples...
For more ideas, go to http://www.teachingenglish.org.
uk/think/articles/concordancers-elt.

Web-based Concordancers
1. http://www.collins.co.uk/Corpus/CorpusSearch.
aspx
2. http://www.lextutor.ca/concordancers/concord_e.
html
3. http://vlc.polyu.edu.hk/concordance/
4. http://sara.natcorp.ox.ac.uk/lookup.html

Collins Cobuild Corpus Concordance Sampler
With Collins Concordance Sampler you can:
access natural, authentic examples of vocabulary and grammar;
work interactively with concordances in the classroom;
quickly prepare handouts, worksheets and self-study materials
based on real data;
carry out in-depth linguistic analyses for your research thesis or
dissertation;
check the corpus for idioms, compounds, grammar problems,
synonyms, spelling, British and American variants, and frequency
statististics.
A Ten-step Introduction to Concordancing through the Collins Cobuild Corpus
Concordance Sampler

Task
1. Go to http://www.collins.co.
uk/Corpus/CorpusSearch.aspx
2. Explore the concordancer by completing the tasks
in the Worksheet.
3. Discuss your ideas for using concordancers with
your partner.
4. What do you like and not like?

Other tools for Vocabulary Development
1. http://www.freerice.com/
2. http://www.savethewords.org/
3. http://www.spellingcity.com
4. http://www.puzzle-maker.com/
5. http://www.wordle.net/
6. http://gifup.com/
7. http://www.wordia.com/
8. http://www.lextutor.ca/
9. http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/
10. http://visual.merriam-webster.com/index.php
11. http://www.visualthesaurus.com/
12. http://www.visuwords.com/
13. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pEAFe7ddgM&feature=channel_page
14. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sm3Uk9sW2e8&feature=channel_page
15. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PScGbLBOvKo
16. http://www.eslpod.com/website/show_podcast.php?issue_id=6349337
17. http://english.langolab.com/
18. http://www.pimpampum.net/bubblr/
19. http://bubbl.us/
Find more teaching ideas at http://nikpeachey.blogspot.
com/search/label/vocabulary

Thank You!
Any Questions?
http://www.slideshare.net/Natalia_Katasonova/ict-tools-for-teaching-
vocabulary-presentation
e-mail: katasonova.natalia@gmail.com